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This convention is an important UN treaty that builds on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which stated that people have a right to seek asylum from persecution. The Refugee Convention defines who qualifies as a refugee, who is responsible for refugees, and what those responsibilities are.

21.3 million people meet the Convention’s definition of refugee: someone who is “persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, [or] membership of a particular social group or political opinion.”

10 million people are stateless, who have been denied a nationality and all the basic rights — education, health care, political participation, freedom of movement — that come with it.

6.9 million internally displaced people in Colombia — the largest number of internally displaced people in any one nation.

To date, 145 countries are party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, meaning that they are obligated to recognize refugees as the Convention defines them and to honor their commitments to asylum-seekers. Sadly, that means that 48 of the UN’s member countries (including the US) have not accepted the convention.

But we’ve still got a long way to go. World leaders need to coordinate efforts to address the crises happening around the world because 65.3 million people are being denied their rights. They are fighting through some of the most challenging circumstances to survive and succeed, but they shouldn’t have to do it alone.